Updated Aug 17, 2020 4 pm PST
A Business/Service Update – COVID-19
As COVID rears its ugly head again with numbers spiking upward, it reminds us yet again how being prepared gives peace of mind. We do not need to be in fear if we follow the guidelines set out by local health authorities and use common sense. Having supplies at home, in the car and the office will allow you to not be caught without.
The effects on the economy are now showing in a measureable (ugly) way and you have to wonder how long our governments (at all levels) can sustain helping Canadian businesses and individuals monetairly before we reach a point where there is no more money to give. We can only hope and pray that the stimulus will pay off.
Most of our suppliers are almost all back to what can be considered “normal” timelines from when purchase orders are placed and when we can expect to pick up.
We have brought on a new calorie ration bar in Datrex as well as their water pouches.
Most if not all kits are back and ready to ship and while we still have some customers (thank you for your patience and understanding) that are waiting on some food items, we are back into a “almost” normal rotation of orders.
Finally, we want to give a big THANK YOU to all of our loyal customers who have stuck with us through this unprecedented time. You have made our tasks lighter by your kind words and positive sentiments. You are, simply, the best!
Until next time,
Ray
Ray Boeyenga
Director
Total Prepare Inc.
June 29, 2020 4 pm PST
A Business/Service Update – COVID-19
We have taken the steps to allow re-opening with all the required health and safety standards in place. We are limiting customers in store to no more than 2 customers at a time. This will help with social distancing recommendations. Please bear with us and we appreciate your patience (we have been getting practice on that for months).Our hours and days open are back to pre-COVID which means 9:30 to 5 pm Monday through Friday. As always, if you need to pick something up outside of those hours, please do not hesitate to contact us to see what can be arranged.
We have restocked our display of XMRE, Fruit and Veggie variety buckets, Calorie Food bars and tasting Backpackers Pantry camping food. Please drop in, stock up on your favorite camping and hiking foods. We look forward to seeing you again!
Best regards,
Ray
Ray Boeyenga
Director
Total Prepare Inc.
May 18, 2020 8 pm PST
A Business/Service Update – COVID-19
As Canada, in many parts, seems to be flattening the curve, the provinces are looking to open up sections of their economy for business. With practicing social distancing, wearing personal protective equipment and the various forms of isolation we have been under, we are getting used to the new normal of waiting outside of banks, grocery and home improvement stores.
As an essential business, we continue to work to provide Canadians with preparedness products, long term food and PPE and we are thankful to our staff, customers and suppliers through what has been and continues to be a very challenging time globally. We are especially thankful for the frontline workers and their tireless efforts to help those most affected.
We have been receiving pallets of food from both Legacy Food Storage and Wise Company and are making our way through the tremendous amount of orders received. Both companies are working tirelessly with extra shifts and weekend production to get product out to their distributors and dealers as fast as they can. A few bumps and bruises along the way have stretched their capacity such as production lines going down for a week (or two), personnel being reduced as cautionary procedures due to COVID and their suppliers temporarily being short on an ingredient to make a meal (or pouches and buckets being backlogged). This unfortunately caused some orders that were placed in the early days of the pandemic to go past their expected delivery time. For this we are truly sorry and we hope that as you receive your orders, you will be glad to be prepared.
As we receive shipments, we are turning them around as quickly as possible to get the product out. Over the last 3 weeks we have received more than 20 pallets of food for orders that are waiting plus some new product that were snapped up quickly. We have a tab under our Food section showing which products are in stock and ready to ship right away. They go quickly so it is always a good idea to check and see what has come in.
For those of you who are still waiting on your orders, we thank you for your patience and understanding. We are hopeful that the timelines will shorten as the manufacturers increase capacity.
Unfortunately, Augason Farms has yet to open up ordering for their dealers and have not given an indication of when they will resume.
Good news for fans of MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat) and those looking to bulk up their supplies. We have a large order of XMRE on route from our supplier and they will be arriving next week (last week of May) into our warehouse. Pre-orders are available and will ship out in priority sequence.
The coronavirus has spurred on many people who have had “getting prepared” on their bucket list for a long time. They have made the decision, purchased product and can now feel the peace of mind that comes from being prepared. The pandemic will eventually be gone, but the floods, fires, earthquakes, snow storms, power outages and other natural disasters will always be with us and so will the logic and sage wisdom of getting prepared and follows the saying of “I’d rather be a year early than a day late.”
Best regards,
Ray
Ray Boeyenga
Director
Total Prepare Inc.
March 26, 2020 – 6:30 am
A Business/Service Update – COVID-19
A quick update regarding various product availability. During the fight against the coronavirus, we have a dedicated page for Infection Protection products incorporating stand alone antiseptic alcohol pads and hand wipes as well as Infection Protection First Aid kits. We will add more products as they come available to us. All of these are in stock and can ship within 48 hours of ordering during normal business hours.
We have some food products ready to ship as soon as orders are placed. These are posted in that category when we receive them into stock. The quantities are limited, but we can get them out within 48 hours of ordering during normal business hours.
Best regards,
Ray
Ray Boeyenga
Director
Total Prepare Inc.
March 25, 2020 – 6:30 am
A Business/Service Update – COVID-19
This update is a little lengthy, but please take the time to read through it as it will assure you we are doing everything possible to provide the best service for everyone.
As we individually and collectively come to grasp with the implications of how COVID-19 has affected us economically, emotionally and intellectually, we need to pause for a moment.
Think about those who are on the front lines of the fight who are working tirelessly to help those who are sick, comfort those who mourn and instruct/assist/educate those who are healthy on what to do to prevent infection. Social distancing and isolation are the most practical and for many the “easiest” to adhere to. At the bottom, I have included links to the Official Health Information on COVID-19.
For our economy to continue to function, there are those businesses and services who are essential that continue to run, and run at full speed. They are providing medical supplies, food, and water to name just a few. Total Prepare is part of this supply chain and we are a vital link to these products for consumers, first responders, care facilities, government entities etc. in Canada. During this time of uncertainty, we as a company are working as safely, efficiently and productively as we can to assist emergency efforts.
Our commitment is to keeping supplies flowing to those who are in need, whether to feed staff or residents, first responders or for shelter in place situations due to isolation orders in Canada.
We continue to receive shipments from our suppliers and turn around our product in a quick a fashion as possible. We also continue to receive kind words and encouragement via phone and email and we appreciate that from the bottom of our hearts. Where we are not as fast as under normal conditions, we ask for your patience and understanding through this. There will be an end where orders can ship in a more timely fashion, but that is not quite on the horizon yet.
We get many phone calls and emails on what we have available for purchase and how long it will take to receive goods.
Legacy Food Storage and Wise Company, our two main food lines, continue to build product to fulfill purchase orders. We get regular updates and the good news is that the timelines have not increased (still 50-60 business days – 10-12 weeks) and their production remains steady. Augason Farms shut down dealer orders early in February and have not given us an ETA when we can order again. Our shipments of freeze dried meat and calorie food bars continue to flow as well with similar but shorter delays than our food storage brands. XMRE production has been halted for the foreseeable future as the meal heaters that come with the meals are all spoken for by the US National Guard. We are trying to see if they will ship to us without heaters, but no answer as of this writing. Almost all product is spoken for before it arrives, so placing your orders now gets you in the queue and we ship first come, first served.
Blue Can water is available for ordering with delays only due to the volume of orders we are processing daily.
Our emergency kits are also available for ordering (Essential kits, Family Prep kits) and we hope to shrink the turnaround times down to a week so you can get product sooner.
Carriers and couriers are deemed essential services so our products will flow out to your homes and businesses (if open). For parcels shipped via Canada Post, you will most likely receive a card to pick up your packages at the local pickup location. We also use Federal Express and TForce (for most multiple piece shipments). The more information you provide us when you order (space for notes or instructions are on the checkout page) the better it will assist us getting it to you with as little interruption as possible.
Quoting the previous update:
“Our warehouse will continue to operate, and ship orders placed through our website. If you have selected “Pickup at Victoria, BC location” we will contact you to arrange a suitable time for you to come by. New orders will still have the option to pick up at our warehouse.
We will still be here answering phones (when we can) and emails (FASTER) as per usual.
For those of you who have orders in the system that we have not shipped yet, please be assured we are working as quickly as we can to have them ready and shipped to you. Concerning orders that are currently outstanding, our goal is and always has been to ship as quickly as possible.”
Official Health Information on COVID-19:
Health Canada
World Health Organization
BC Centre for Disease Control
Best regards,
Ray
Ray Boeyenga
Director
Total Prepare Inc.
March 18,2020 – 6:30 am
A Business/Service Update – COVID-19
Coronavirus continues to spread rapidly around the world. Every media outlet has dedicated pages giving updates as they come available.
Total Prepare’s supply chains are open and although stretched, remain steady. We are receiving shipments regularly and are doing our best to turn them around to you our customers in as timely a fashion as is possible. We thank you for the kind words and encouragement we receive via telephone calls, emails and on social media. We are humbled by the support as we strive to provide Canadians with the best possible service under very trying circumstances.
As a company committed to providing emergency preparedness products for Canadians coast to coast, we are taking the coronavirus concerns very seriously. To do this we need to keep our shipping department and warehouse running fully.
To that end, we have decided, in order to help us gain ground on the quantity of orders we need to get out to our customers and for the safety of our staff, to temporarily shut down our retail storefront until we collectively can get ahead of this virus. Our warehouse will continue to operate, and ship orders placed through our website. If you have selected “Pickup at Victoria, BC location” we will contact you to arrange a suitable time for you to come by. New orders will still have the option to pick up at our warehouse.
We will still be here answering phones (when we can) and emails (FASTER) as per usual.
For those of you who have orders in the system that we have not shipped yet, please be assured we are working as quickly as we can to have them ready and shipped to you. Concerning orders that are currently outstanding, our goal is and always has been to ship as quickly as possible.
Best, Ray
Ray Boeyenga
Director
Total Prepare Inc.
Update – 03/13/20
The news of Coronavirus spreading has everyone in the news media and country focused again on being prepared with emergency supplies, especially food storage. With the massive increase in demand for emergency products, we are experiencing an unprecedented spike in orders that will cause shipping delays on every order placed. Please be aware that food orders (Legacy/Wise) face lengthy delays up to 60 business days from the time the order is placed. We are adding to our individual product pages increased shipping times for other products and categories.
All other orders we are working hard to ship in 2 – 3 weeks.
All orders are shipped on a first come, first serve basis. Ordering today will reserve your spot in line and we will do everything in our power to get your order in your hands as quickly as possible. Our suppliers have ramped up production and are running double shifts to get orders produced and out the door as quickly as they can. We appreciate your patience as we deal with this emergency.
If you have any questions, please email our customer service at [email protected]. Email will be the FASTEST and most effective way to get answers to your questions and updates on your orders. We will get back to you as quickly as possible, but please understand that our customer service is handling thousands of emails, calls, and chats and doing their best to respond to every single request.
We apologize for the delay and thank you in advance for your business, patience and understanding as we all work through this together.